Kolkata, May 22 (IANS) In a startling development, the Jhalmuri vendor, who treated Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the popular local snack in Jhargram during the Bengal Assembly election campaign, is getting death threats from unknown international numbers. The vendor claimed that he was getting threatening calls from Pakistan and Bangladesh on a daily basis for the past few days.

The Jhalmuri vendor shot into the limelight and became a national figure overnight after PM Modi took a brief halt at his shop during the high-voltage campaign, to get a taste of the local Bengali snack. The light-hearted exchange between the jhalmuri vendor and PM Modi became the talk of the town and also hogged the national headlines, while he became a ‘star jhalmuri vendor’.

The overnight fame has now come to haunt him.

The shopkeeper named Vikram Sao says that he is worried for himself and his family as he fears that the callers may conspire to do something sinister to harm him.

Speaking to IANS, he said, “I am getting repeated threat calls from Pakistan via video and phone calls. They are threatening to blow me up with bombs.”

“Those making video calls to me are making frightening gestures to frighten me and also brandishing weapons, and they warned me that you will face dire consequences,” he added.

Vikram Sao said that he didn’t pick up many calls, but the phone didn’t stop ringing. He said that the callers are calling him names and also hurling expletives.

“There are threatening calls from Bangladesh, who are trying to terrorise me. They ask me, Are you alive or dead?” he stated.

“I have also received WhatsApp messages, asking that you will be killed in a bomb explosion,” he further said.

According to him, the callers dishing out threats to him didn’t speak anything about his ‘connect’ with the Prime Minister, but the threatening calls started only after PM Modi took a pause at his shop to relish Jhalmuri.

Vikram further said that the callers first offered a religious greeting and then threatened to kill him.

He and his family are alarmed over threat calls from international numbers; however, the police have launched a probe after they escalated the matter.

He has also been provided with security cover, with policemen guarding him.

When questioned whether he has any specific appeal to make to the Prime Minister, he said that the government should provide him with adequate safety cover.

–IANS

mr/uk